A man got more than he bargained for after buying what he thought was a decommissioned hand grenade as bomb-disposal experts had to be called to explode the live device.

Police and bomb-disposal experts cordoned off a quiet road today (March 27) after a man became suspicious a decommissioned grenade he bought from a shop was in fact a live explosive.

The incident took place in Barton Road in Wisbech.

The man had bought the grenade thinking it was a decommissioned device

A spokeswoman for Cambridgeshire Constabulary said: “We received a report from a member of the public in Barton Road, Wisbech, who believed he may have bought a live hand grenade. He bought it thinking it was decommissioned.

“EOD (explosive ordnance disposal) attended the scene and confirmed it was live. They detonated the grenade this afternoon in a controlled explosion.